LUCKNOW: With the murder of gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Khalid Azeem aka Ashraf, the focus of the Uttar Pradesh police has now shifted to Atiq’s wife Shaista Parveen to unravel the truth behind the Umesh Pal murder. Shaista has eluded the police net for almost two months, having been absconding since February 26, two days after the murder of Umesh Pal and his two police guards.
Shaista, Zainab Fatima (Ashraf’s wife), Atiq’s sister Aisha Noori and her daughters are all among the accused in Umesh Pal murder case. However, Shaista is carrying a reward of Rs 50,000 on her arrest. Meanwhile, Bombbaaz Guddu Muslim, one of the closest aides of Atiq and wanted in Umesh Pal murder case is also absconding, carrying a reward of Rs 5 lakh on his head. UP STF chief Amitabh Yash claims that Guddu Muslim will soon be in the police net.
While the Prayagraj police administration had been expecting a surrender by Atiq’s wife Shaista Parveen after the encounter of her son Asad on April 13 followed by Atiq and Ashraf’s killing on Saturday night, she neither surrendered nor did she make any effort to attend the burial of Asad or that of Atiq and Ashraf. As per police sources, multiple teams were tracing Shaista Parveen as after the killing of Atiq and Ashraf, it was she who could spill beans about procurement of the sophisticated weapons used to kill Umesh Pal by Atiq’s gang, the arrangement of money for the assailants and other crucial details.
“The interrogation of Shaista is crucial to breach the network through which Atiq gang used to procure ultra-modern and sophisticated weapons. Both Atiq and Ashraf had hinted during their grilling in police remand that Shaista was handling monetary transactions and was running the illegal real estate business while both the brothers were away in jail,” said a senior police source. The investigation so far had hinted at Shaista’s active involvement in handing over money, sim cards etc to the Umesh Pal shooters, added the official. A resident of Damupur village of Prayagraj, Shaista was married to Atiq in 1996. She is the eldest among four sisters and two brothers. Her father Mohammad Harun is a retired police constable.
Significantly, with half a dozen accused, including Asad, Atiq and Ashraf, in the Umesh Pal murder dead, Shaista is the only important link to unravel the truth. “Moreover, Shaista was Atiq’s key connection to the outside world since 2017 when he was sent to jail. She is also a potential source to reveal details of individuals who helped Atiq run his illegal empire of benami properties in UP and outside,” said another senior police official.
“She can also spill the beans about Atiq’s associates who were making profits in his name and throw light on those from whom Atiq had death threats,” said an officer. So far, the Prayagraj administration has attached Atiq’s properties worth around Rs 417 crore and has demolished worth over Rs 752 crore in the past three years. Those who were close to Atiq disclosed that he used to invest his illegally earned money into other businesses and projects through his white collared partners including politicians, builders, realtors, big contractors, hotel owners, doctors, lawyers etc. He made investments in their projects and used to draw profits which used to reach Shaista.
Highly placed sources in Prayagraj also claim that Shaista did not surrender yet as she knew that in her absence, there would be no one to look after Atiq’s empire of crores and that his property and assets would usurped by his henchmen and associates.
In fact, Atiq had purchased properties worth crores in the name of his associates and henchmen. Earlier, his properties were identified in Prayagraj, Kaushambi, Lucknow and some 20 other districts. Moreover, Atiq’s ‘benami’ properties and investments are also believed be in many other states.
Shaista, 51, has four criminal cases registered against her at Colonelganj and Dhoomanganj police stations of Prayagraj. The first three cases filed at Colonelganj police station date back to 2009 and were registered under different sections of the Indian Penal Code, including 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery of valuable security or will), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using forged document) besides section 30 (contravention of licence or rule) of the Arms Act. In these three cases, charge sheets have been filed by the police at the court of special chief judicial magistrate, Prayagraj.
However, the fourth case registered on February 24, 2023 at Dhoomanganj police station relates to the murders of lawyer Umesh Pal, a prime witness in the 2005 BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case, and his two police guards.